In the aftermath
by officefan
Summary: After cocktails, Pam goes to see Jim.


With her hands shaking, Pam tried to put the key into the ignition of her car. She couldn't believe Roy had gone off that way. Maybe she shouldn't have told him. God knows what he would do to Jim the next time he saw him.

"Shit…Jim" she thought to herself. "I've got to tell him."

Pam dug around in her purse, looking for her cell phone. She quickly found Jim's number and hit SEND.

He picked up on the second ring.

"Pam?" he said, his voice sounding hushed.

"Jim." She started, not sure where to go. "I—I…"

"Pam, what's wrong?"

"Roy. I, told him and he lost it and---"

"Did he hurt you Pam? What did he do? Where are you?"

"Driving home, I don't know if I should even go there, I – god Jim, you should have seen him. It was awful"

"Go to my house, Mark is there, he will let you in. I'll be there soon." He said, and before he hung up he said "Its going to be ok Pam, don't worry"

"Thanks Jim"

Pam drove to Jim's house where Mark let her in and awkwardly told her she could watch whatever she wanted on TV and got her a glass of water. After a few minutes he just excused himself and said he had to go to bed. Pam rested her head on the arm of Jim's couch and flipped through the channels.

She put on some sitcom she found on network TV and barely paid attention to it. She couldn't decide what was worse, Roy showing up at Jim's house and finding her there. At least Jim had a roommate; maybe both of them could take Roy down. Or would it be worse for Roy to go to Pam's house later, and her be there alone. Or would it be worse if he saw that she hadn't gone home yet, and then try to find her.

She heard a car pull up in the driveway, the crunch of footsteps on the gravel outside, and then a key in the lock.

"Pam?" she heard Jim say quietly.

Pam lifted her head up from the arm of the couch where she had been lying and at the sight of Jim started to cry for the first time that night.

Jim ran a hand through his hair, put his keys down on the kitchen counter, and made his way to where Pam was sitting on the couch.

Pam noticed he was dressed up and remembered the cocktail party.

"Oh Jim," she said between sniffing and choked tears, "I forgot, I'm so sorry I forgot you were out with Karen at that cocktail party for work."

Jim chuckled "only you could think about that when something that is clearly very serious has happened. Spill Beasley"

Pam straightened up and wiped away a few tears. "I was at a bar with Roy, and I decided to tell him about…well…" suddenly she felt really awkward, they never really talked about that night before "casino night."

Jim's face darkened. "Oh, well, how did he take it."

At this, Pam began to sob again.

Jim reached out and pulled Pam to him so she was against his chest. He rubbed his hand in a slow circle on her back.

"I'm guessing he didn't take it well?"

"He destroyed the bar." Pam said weakly, slightly muffled by Jim's shirt.

"Nooo" Jim groaned.

"He threw a glass, or two, a chair, and that was all before I left."

"Pam, I'm sorry"

She pulled back and leaned against the back of the couch.

"I just don't know what to do. I'm scared of a man I spent 10 years with. I just feel stupid for ever trying to make it work again. I should haven known. Now I feel like I don't know who he even is. He lost it, Jim, absolutely lost it. The thing is, I had to tell you, I don't even want to think about what he might do the next time he sees you. I'm scared to go home and I'm scared to even be here. I'm scared that he will see I'm not home and then try and come find me. Really, I just want something to go right lately. Ever since I called off my wedding it has been all downhill. I just wanted something normal again in my life, so I started dating Roy again. Just stupid, really stupid."

"Pam, look at me" Jim said and turned her face to his, "You are not stupid, Roy is stupid. He's an asshole, you deserve so much more. You deserve someone to treat you like you ought to be treated. As for Roy, let him cool off, I'll carry a tire iron with me from now on. Don't worry about me. Ok? Just never say you were stupid, you were not being stupid."

Jim pulled Pam back into a hug as she started crying again. She looked up at him and he smoothed her hair away from her face. Using his thumb, he wiped a tear away from her cheek.

"Would you like to stay?" Jim asked her.

"Would…you" she almost said Karen, "mind?"

"Of course not, I don't want you going home anyways, with Roy on the drunken rampage."

She looked kind of sad at this remark.

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean---"

"Its fine, Jim"

She followed him into his bedroom where he handed her a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. His heart swelled when he saw her come out of his bathroom, sweatpants hanging off her hips and rolled about five times. If the situation weren't so weird, he would have kissed her right then.

He pulled back the covers for her and once she got in he awkwardly turned to go and sleep on the couch.

"Would you—"Pam said, then stopped

Jim turned and looked at her.

"Never mind I'm sorry, I'm really putting you out, I can –"

"Do you want me to sit here until you fall asleep"

Pam just nodded lightly.

"Come here." He said as he lied down next to her and let her rest her head on his chest. He probably should have been thinking about Karen at that moment, but nothing could have been farther from his mind.

All he knew was at that moment, even Roy banging down his front door with a machine gun couldn't have ruined what he was feeling at that moment.


End file.
